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SUMMER TDM.
● ● ● T D M . 0 9
The words ring in your ears as in the darkness of your dream, a chromatic glow pulses, slowly enveloping you. It is not a feeling of comfort that surrounds you, though — as a distorted voice whispers in your ear, you feel it: cold dread, and a sudden certainty that everything is about to be irrevocably changed.
It is to this daunting realization that you wake, and as your heart slows into something resembling a normal tempo, you notice something you should have noticed immediately: you are not in your bed.
1.0 White walls, clinical yet clean, sparsely-furnished rooms. You may wake in one of three rooms: a room with only one bed, a room with two beds, or a room with four beds. Those waking up in rooms with more than one bed notice that they are very much not alone. Perhaps the other occupants of the room are still sleeping, dreaming the same dream as you just did, or a regular one after returning to the station just a few days ago … or perhaps you wake to the other person in the room watching you.
What you do is entirely up to you: yell in surprise when you wake to someone staring at you? Or maybe you’ll try to sneak away before anyone notices you...
2.0 Those with life-threatening injuries find themselves awakening in the infirmary, in a regular hospital bed. Most of their injuries have been treated, and any lingering illnesses or conditions will have designated medicine bottles on the table next to the bed.
White curtains surround the bed on both sides, giving an illusion of privacy. But is that a rustling sound you hear? Some footsteps? Perhaps you’re not the only one in need of some medical attention... or you've attracted the attention of those with experience in medical aid, and they rush to your bedside, surprised about this sudden new patient.
It is not just for your injuries that you may want some company, but also for leaving the infirmary — you can’t stay there forever, after all, and will have to make your way through the hallways of the station to the living quarters, and claim a room and a bed there.
Once you’re up, you may notice there’s something in your ear: an earpiece that, when you become aware of it, quickly runs you through the instructions for how to use the network, a recorded message by a female voice that explains exactly why you’re here… and leaves you with a map of the station.
So what else is there to do but to explore? Best get to know what is now your new home.
3.0 When trying to decide where yo go, you may find your way to the armory, where you can try to work the machine there to make yourself a weapon — perhaps to replace one that didn’t come with you to the station… or maybe you want to be prepared for the future. The recently-returned team members will surely recommend having a functional weapon with you.
4.0 After you’ve exhausted yourself training, it’s time to grab a bite. For that, you should head to the kitchen, which is equipped with all the basic appliances you might need, and ingredients for most regular dishes.
5.0 A welcome reprieve to the cold, dark space that surrounds the characters can be found in the sunlight room. A skillful illusion surrounds anyone who steps inside the room: the sun hangs high overhead, bright and unyielding. Those who aren't so keen on the heat may be tempted to find shade under one of the many towering trees scattered about the lush green fields, or even take a dip in the room's crystalline pond.
With an illusion so authentic it may leave you longing for a nice glass of ice-cold lemonade, it is easy to forget you are in space at all. Perhaps that gives you comfort, or just makes you miss the real nature all the more.
6.0 If you’d rather choose tinkering over nature, the lab is guaranteed to provide you with some entertainment. Glass vials and jars of chemicals sit on shelves in a surprisingly beautiful display of colour on one side of the room, while the other side of the room contains stacks of boxes containing assorted equipment: cords, bolts, panels, buttons, gears, gadgets, gizmos, and thingamabobs. The downside is that the parts available seem to have no apparent method to their sorting. So get digging, and you may just find exactly what you need to make what you’ve always wanted to make!
7.0 As you wander back towards the common areas, you may notice a room off to the side. The room takes up a chunk of the common area, and on its unassuming door is a little plaque that reads, 'The Ximusic room'. Should you enter, you will find a sound-proofed practice room that contains — yes, you guessed it, band equipment that even the most musically inclined should be satisfied with. So pick up an instrument, saunter up to the microphone to belt out your favourite tunes, or take a seat at the side of the room and enjoy others' playing.
8.0 If it’s items you’re lacking, though, some time after your arrival, the earpiece alerts you to a new message.
As you make your way to the platform, you'll see there is nothing amiss in the neat piles of items on it. There’s clothes, shoes, dishware, skincare, books… even a couple of CDs, and a few cute stuffed animals. So sort through what there is and grab what you want, before someone else does!
Eventually, you’ll find yourself at the doors of the the simulation room — it has been equipped with a new simulation to take you through possible mission-like scenarios so it’s best to prepare yourself and see what it has in store for you.
8.0 The doors slide shut behind you and the room goes dark. Small pinpricks of light will start to build on each other until you’re surrounded by grey skies overhead and grassy green lawns, a row of old stone columns lining your vision. It seems you’re in a courtyard of some kind, but that’s not all. Something tugs at the hem of your sleeve or nudges at your leg, a warm presence that feels comfortable and ultimately very familiar. They look up at you, or maybe they meet your eye-level, a creature that varies in size, shape, colour, and form depending on what reflects you best. This creature, known as a compalion is a physical manifestation of your spirit or soul and will stay by your side on this journey.
You can stay here and get to know your compalion, or you can take your new companion and explore the campus. Because, if you do move forward past the line of columns (a hallway it turns out), you’ll find that the small cluster of buildings forms an academic campus of some kind.
• Your compalion will shift into one form throughout this simulation and can be any creature that best mirrors your personality.
• They can be as small as a flea and as large as a small elephant; get creative!
• Whether they speak to you in your native tongue is entirely up to you (some speak, some don’t)
• Basically daemon rules apply.
9.0 While it might seem like fun to spend hours just exploring the old buildings with your compalion and any Orbers like you that you might bump into along the way, it’s important to remember that you have a goal to achieve: follow the clues and retrieve the orb. Your compalion might offer an idea or two for where to go, or it may just be voicing the thoughts in your head, but it’s not a bad thing to follow your heart (or your gut) as it were. You might find that the rooftops of the campus buildings are easily climbable to get a good vantage point of your location. (Just be careful not to slip and fall! The height from here is quite dangerous.) A clocktower stands proud in the distance among a cluster of other campus buildings, marking the time.
Inside, you might be led down dark stone halls and into a series of classrooms: including reading quarters, study rooms with old leather couches and warm carpets covering stone floors; lecture halls with stiff wooden seating and individual desks to match, a chalkboard with indiscernible scribbles half-wiped away; and a laboratory that deals with something a little less modern than you might be used to, or perhaps with its twisty vials and bubbling potions, it suits you perfectly. There is the large library filled from floor to ceiling with books beyond imagining.
If you look out from the tall arch-shaped window from a classroom, or if you’re outside and you tilt your head up to the sky, you might notice that the sky appears to be darkening further, growing heavy with what is inevitably an oncoming rainstorm. If you’re inside, it might be best to stay indoors; if you’re outside, perhaps it’s time to find some shelter. Or if you’re determined to find that orb outside, risk you and your compalion getting wet.
● ● ●
N O T E: Additionally, there are three personal tasks provided to each character as they enter the simulation. In-game, each character will be given one task. For the purposes of the test drive, we’re leaving it to players to pick a task for their character and run with it.
A Team up with another Orber and their compalion to find the orb's location.
B Climb into the clocktower and ring the bell.
C Explain your best theory regarding your compalion’s manifestation to a fellow team member.
F Y I
• TDM threads can be used as samples for apps. In fact, we encourage it!
• Reserves are now open!
• Apps open June 25.
• For any questions regarding TDM, please direct them here. For questions about the game, please refer to the FAQ.
FOR SOME FUN:
Have a clue about the upcoming mission—
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[Some of them are from worlds where... well, given this boy's reaction, Sabriel's not going to mention necromancy. But it's probably better to calm him down and explain with words, rather than offering another demonstration.]
In some worlds, the practice of magic and... esoteric arts are relatively common, but traveling through outer space would seem fantastical. And then there are worlds like yours, where such forces are less prominent, but the supernatural is seen as mere superstition.
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[ The fact that she's fairly calm and hasn't done anything else uncanny in the last minute is reassuring ... but with the initial "magic" shock subsiding, he's able to focus on the fact that she's vaguely but accurately describing his world, while he has no idea about hers. He shifts out of an anticipating-a-fight stance, running a hand through his messy hair, and stands a little straighter and more casual--but there's still obvious wariness in the suspicious furrow of his brows and in his tense shoulders. ]
If you don't have space travel, why do you know about mobile suits?
[ The original mobile suits being for space construction, not having experience with one but knowing about the other doesn't make sense. ]
no subject
[No point in not being direct. Dancing around this particular truth will just lead to complications later.
The wariness about magic is understandable, but concerning. Probably best to clear things up, and lay any possible fears to rest.]
I'm far from the only mage in the crew- but I promise, none of us are going to hurt you.
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Whozak?
[ Ahahahahaha sorry Sabriel, Shinn has only been in the same room as Yzak once, and he's only heard the given name twice in some radio chatter in the middle of a fight. It will take him a while, if ever, to put the given name into context. He'd do better with the surname. ]
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[Although Sabriel does feel a little bit stupid for assuming everyone in a military knows each other. So she smiles apologetically, even as she reaches back for the project she dropped- a hollow shell of carefully curled wires that is still glowing. But apparently not hot, given how Sabriel holds it without discomfort.]
So yes, I've... met someone from your world. And my apologies for not introducing myself- my name is Sabriel.
no subject
[ His face screws up in concentration for a moment as he pieces together a mission brief about the Jule Team, then radio chatter and the given name and something about I'm in charge here in the middle of the mission itself. And there was a white-haired commander with her haircut in that meeting with Lacus Clyne at Aprilius? His expression visibly flickers into surprise as it clicks. ]
The Meteor Breaker team at Junius Seven! That was ages ago.
[ It's definitely weird to think back on that battle. It was only his third real combat deployment, and veterans of the first ward had seemed unbelievably strong. These days, Shinn is absolutely confident that he's one of the best pilots alive. And Shinn won't ruin the mood by thinking too much about the guy Yzak was yelling at over the radio. ]
I'm Shinn. Shinn Asuka.
[ Because she seems a little flustered and hasn't said anything annoying, she even gets a smile with it. The light ball won't really get his attention until and unless he notices that it doesn't have a bulb or a power source underneath all the wires. ]
no subject
[Sabriel rolls the ball of wires over in her hands. It's almost time to test it, she just needs to make a few more adjustments, insert the last few spells, and she can see if it works... or explodes.]
Do you have any questions? About what life here is like, or how missions work?
no subject
[ He exhales and finally rocks back on his heels, the last vestiges of the fighting stance gone. His voice is a little quieter, more tentative and definitely quieter, more melancholy. He wants to believe, but he's been burned before. ]
Is it true, about granting wishes?
no subject
[Sabriel answers with absolute certainty, going still as she meets Shinn's gaze.]
Although they have minds of their own... and there's a reason that our ultimate goal isn't just undoing our regrets, but keeping them confined to this station.
no subject
Yeah, but "can fix a regret" doesn't mean "will fix a regret."
no subject
[One of the few rules they seem bound to.]
no subject
Where are they? The ones that are on the station, anyway.
[ If you're going to work for them, it seems like you should get to see them. ]
no subject
[Which is reassuring to Sabriel, although she realizes that Shinn... probably doesn't know Degar. Or Viveca, or what they've learned of the station's history, and the fate of the prior crew. Or how important it is that the orbs stay contained.
So her voice grows more solemn as she keeps talking.]
Before our arrival... The orbs were confined by means other than Degar's power, and escaped. That incident lead to the deaths of nearly all the previous crew.
[The details, Sabriel feels, are not hers to tell. Not so soon, at least.]
But rest assured, they are now securely confined.
no subject
-- who the hell would "rest assured" after hearing "the previous crew died"? It sounds like something out of a horror movie!
no subject
But she understands Shinn's reaction. He has very little background in such things, and this is a lot of information.]
Sorry. The previous form of restraint was technological, rather than magical. The current method is far more stable, and it's been reinforced.
[Given Sabriel's experience with how magic and technology tended to interact, trying to use the latter to restrain the former seemed incredibly foolish and she's not surprised it failed, but there's definitely some personal bias involved.]
As for what happened- the orbs got loose, and the made one of the crew kill the others- all but Viveca and Degar.
[And Sabriel is visibly uncomfortable sharing this, but... this is all information that's recorded and available. Better Shinn learns this now.]
The details aren't mine to relate, but they made a deal with the orbs to bring everyone back at the cost of never leaving the station, and the orbs were scattered once again.
no subject
[ The idea leaves Shinn reeling for a moment, way too distracted to notice Sabriel's discomfort. Never! He's pretty sure he couldn't trade away seeing Lunamaria again, even to save an entire ship's crew. ]
Screw this! I'm not helping those ungrateful bastards.
[ Actually, he's starting to think that they sound dangerous and should be destroyed, but he has a nagging sense that Athrun will yeet him into the moon again if he says "destroy" and "orb" in the same sentence. ]
no subject
[There's a sharpness in Sabriel's tone, one that wasn't there before. She straightens up to her full height- and starts looming. At 5'11", she's taller than Shinn by a few inches.]
They chose to sacrifice their dreams, their future, all for the sake of making sure that an incredibly dangerous force was safely contained.
no subject
The orbs are ungrateful bastards.
no subject
I'm sorry for misunderstanding but- yes. They are. But we also need to collect them to undo our regrets... so the plan is to collect them, reunite them... and then leave them sealed away this station, so far away from everything else that they'll never be able to cause trouble again.
[And if they get their regrets undone, if Sabriel's friends can be alive again... well, sometimes, good deeds have rewards beyond themselves.]
no subject
How do you know they'll stay sealed after they're reunited?
no subject
[And there's a quiet confidence in her tone as Sabriel speaks- she's proud of her skill as a Charter mage and necromancer, of her power as Abhorsen.]
Keeping them contained indefinitely is possible. Difficult, but possible.
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[Sabriel keeps her tone level, trying to keep both amusement and exasperation out of her voice.]
I know magic is new to you, but some of us have been dealing with it since childhood. If you wish to learn more about it, I'd be happy to teach you, but if not- please don't underestimate it.
no subject
Yeah, but all you've done is move junk and a lightshow. That's not gonna trap murder balls.
[ His tone is matter-of-fact, and he doesn't actually intend to be mean, all you've done is just unintentionally dismissive. And yes, he is ignoring that moving junk and a lightshow completely threw him for a loop a few minutes ago. ]
no subject
[Sabriel's tone is half playful, half serious. The air around her shimmers, the mark of her forehead flaring to life.
A basic shielding spell, but if Shinn hits it, it would be like sending his fist into a wall.]
Try to hit me.
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